Any Day Now (TV series)
Any Day Now is an American drama series that aired on the Lifetime network from 1998 to 2002. The show stars Annie Potts and Lorraine Toussaint, who are best friends despite the difference in their races.
| Any Day Now | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Created by | Nancy Miller Deborah Joy LeVine |
| Starring | Annie Potts Lorraine Toussaint Mae Middleton Olivia Hack Shari Dyon Perry Maya Goodwin |
| Opening theme | "Any Day Now" performed by Lori Perry |
| Composer(s) | Susan Marder |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 4 |
| No. of episodes | 88 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60 min (approx) |
| Production company(s) | Paid Our Dues Productions Finnegan/Pinchuk Productions Spelling Entertainment |
| Release | |
| Original network | Lifetime |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) |
| Original release | August 18, 1998 – March 10, 2002 |
The show's title is taken from the 1962 Chuck Jackson song "Any Day Now". A version performed by Lori Perry served as the show's theme song.
Setting
Any Day Now focuses on the lives and interactions of two female protagonists: Mary Elizabeth "M.E." O'Brien Sims (Potts) and Rene Jackson (Toussaint). The two had grown up as close friends in Birmingham, Alabama, in the 1960s during the peak of the Civil Rights Movement. However, their friendship ended when M.E. became pregnant and chose, despite Rene's disapproval, to keep the child, drop out of college, and marry her boyfriend, Colliar Sims.
More than twenty years later, M.E. and her husband still live in Birmingham, where they struggle to make ends meet. Their oldest son, Bobby, died as a child; but they have two more children, daughter Kelly and son Davis. Rene moved to Washington, D.C., where she was a successful attorney for many years; but, after the death of her father, Rene decides to move back to Birmingham and establish a law practice there. She reunites with M.E., and the two quickly resume their close friendship. In every episode, contemporary storylines are interwoven with a storyline from their shared past.
Format
Each hour-long episode contained alternating scenes from two different timelines. The 1960s timeline followed the young version of the girls, who became friends despite the discomfort of M.E.'s naively bigoted parents and her openly racist Uncle Jimmy, an avowed member of the Ku Klux Klan. M.E. and Rene's friendship was fostered by M.E.'s loving grandmother and her older brother, Johnny, who was sent to Vietnam, while M.E.'s older sister, Teresa, often threatened to tell their parents that M.E.'s "little colored friend" had been in their house. Colliar Sims (Chris Mulkey), M.E.'s childhood sweetheart and eventual husband, played a large role in this timeline as well. Rene's family included her father, James (John Lafayette), who was a lawyer and an active member of the Civil Rights Movement; her mother, Sarah, also active in the movement; and her older brother Elston, who was the same age as M.E.'s brother Johnny but dodged the draft by fleeing to Canada.
The contemporary timeline showed M.E. and Rene as adults. M.E. was a homemaker with aspirations of becoming a writer, and Rene starts her own law firm in Birmingham. Characters from the 1960s timeline appeared in the contemporary timeline as well, such as Rene's widowed mother, her brother Elston (openly gay, with an adopted son), M.E.'s oft-divorced sister Teresa (Delta Burke), and M.E.'s aging parents, whose views on race had mellowed somewhat over the years, quite in contrast to unrepentantly racist Uncle Jimmy, who still antagonized Rene if given the chance.
The show dealt with issues like modern-day racism, homosexuality, religion, women's rights, rape, natural disaster, alcohol, suicide, and death. During Season 3, M.E.'s daughter Kelly dated an African-American boy, Ajoni (Derrex Brady), and became pregnant by him at age 17, much to Colliar's dismay; Kelly and Ajoni chose to marry and keep the baby, whom they named Emmett. Eventually, M.E. published a book and was invited to teach at the local college. Rene's over-all story arc dealt mainly with her law practice; although she enjoyed great success as a lawyer, eventually focusing her practice on civil rights law, she sometimes regretted that she had never married nor had a family. In the final episode of the show, Rene married Judge Clyde "Turk" Terhune (William Allen Young).
In most episodes there was either a common theme between the scenes presented from each timeline, or a direct connection between the events depicted in the past and how it affected those in the present.
In the fourth season, the actresses Mae Middleton (M.E.) and Shari Dyon Perry (Rene) were replaced by Olivia Hack and Maya Goodwin, respectively, as the producers wanted the girls to encounter more mature storylines. However, Dan Byrd kept the role of Colliar Sims.
Any Day Now ended after 88 episodes, with Rene's marriage, as well as M.E. and Rene's mothers finally putting an end to their decades-long animosity.
Main cast & crew
- Annie Potts as Mary Elizabeth "M.E." Sims
- Lorraine Toussaint as Rene Jackson
- Shari Dyon Perry as Young Rene Jackson (1998–2001)
- Mae Middleton as Young M.E. O'Brien (1998–2001)
- Maya Goodwin as Young Rene Jackson (2001-2002)
- Olivia Hack as Young M.E. O'Brien (2001-2002)
- Chris Mulkey as Colliar Sims
- Derrex Brady as Ajoni Williams
- Olivia Friedman as Kelly (Sims) Williams
- John Lafayette as James Jackson
- Donzaleigh Abernathy as Sara Jackson
Supporting cast
- Julie St. Claire as Joy (1998–1999)
- Christopher Winsor as Davis Sims (1998)
- Calvin Devault as Davis Sims (1999–2002)
- Christopher Babers as Young Elston Jackson
- William Converse-Roberts as Matthew O'Brien
- Nancy Mcloughlin as Catherine O'Brien
- James Deeds as Johnny O'Brien
- Elise Shirley as Young Theresa O'Brien
- Delta Burke as Theresa O'Brien
- Michael Pavone as Jimmy O'Brien
- Dan Byrd as Young Colliar Sims
- Millie Perkins as Grandma Irene Otis
- Richard Biggs as Bill Moody
- Bronson Picket as Joe Lozano
- Tony Barriere as Young Tully
- Mary-Pat Green as Odessa
- Taneka Johnson as Lakeisha Reynolds
- Don McManus as Graham Pearce
- Alyssa Nichols as April
- Alexandra Hedison as Rhonda
- Monique Edwards as Cynthia
Episodes
Season 1 (1998–99)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Unfinished Symphony" | Jeff Bleckner | Deborah Joy LeVine & Nancy Miller | August 18, 1998 |
| 2 | 2 | "Huh?" | Oz Scott | Nancy Miller | August 25, 1998 |
| 3 | 3 | "Eve of Destruction" | Joe Ann Fogle | Dee Johnson | September 1, 1998 |
| 4 | 4 | "It's Called Depression" | Artie Mandelberg | Deborah Joy LeVine & Nancy Miller | September 8, 1998 |
| 5 | 5 | "Making Music with the Wrong Man" | James Hayman | Kathleen McGhee-Anderson | September 15, 1998 |
| 6 | 6 | "No Comment" | Joeann Fogle | Sibyl Gardner | September 29, 1998 |
| 7 | 7 | "Please Don't Tell My Mother" | Sharron Miller | Bob Lowry | October 6, 1998 |
| 8 | 8 | "Courage...It Means Heart" | Oz Scott | Valerie Woods | October 13, 1998 |
| 9 | 9 | "You Shoulda Seen My Daddy" | Mel Damski | Mark Israel | October 20, 1998 |
| 10 | 10 | "Call Him Johnny" | Artie Mandelberg | Annie Brunner | October 27, 1998 |
| 11 | 11 | "It's Who You Sleep With" | Jan Eliasberg | Dee Johnson & Valerie Woods | November 3, 1998 |
| 12 | 12 | "Salamanders" | Michael Pavone | Sibyl Gardner | December 1, 1998 |
| 13 | 13 | "I Feel Awful" | Artie Mandelberg | Bob Lowry & Nancy Miller | December 8, 1998 |
| 14 | 14 | "Quit Bein' Such a Scaredy Cat" | James Hayman | Dee Johnson | December 15, 1998 |
| 15 | 15 | "Blue" | Artie Mandelberg | Kathleen McGhee-Anderson | January 5, 1999 |
| 16 | 16 | "It's Your Problem, Not Mine" | Bob McCracken | Mark Israel | January 12, 1999 |
| 17 | 17 | "Trust Me" | Michael Zinberg | Valerie Woods | January 19, 1999 |
| 18 | 18 | "I Wish You Could Understand" | Michael Pavone | Star Frohman & Bob Lowry | January 26, 1999 |
| 19 | 19 | "Chapter One" | Jan Eliasberg | Annie Brunner | February 9, 1999 |
| 20 | 20 | "I'm Not Emotional" | Artie Mandelberg | Sibyl Gardner | February 16, 1999 |
| 21 | 21 | "Music from My Life" | Arvin Brown | Bob Lowry | March 2, 1999 |
| 22 | 22 | "It's About the Heart" | Artie Mandelberg | Nancy Miller | March 9, 1999 |
Season 2 (1999–2000)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 1 | "You Promise? I Promise" | Jan Eliasberg | Mark Israel | August 15, 1999 |
| 24 | 2 | "You Really Believe in That Stuff?" | Artie Mandelberg | Dee Johnson & Valerie Woods | August 22, 1999 |
| 25 | 3 | "It's a Man's World" | Michael Zinberg | Star Frohman | September 5, 1999 |
| 26 | 4 | "Don't Say Anything" | Michael Pavone | Kathleen McGhee-Anderson & Sibyl Gardner | September 12, 1999 |
| 27 | 5 | "Heads or Tails" | Bob McCracken | Dee Johnson & Bob Lowry | September 19, 1999 |
| 28 | 6 | "So This Is Intimacy?" | Arite Mandelberg | Nancy Miller | September 26, 1999 |
| 29 | 7 | "It's Not You, It's Me" | Bob McCracken | Dee Johnson | October 10, 1999 |
| 30 | 8 | "Family Is Family" | Jo Ann Fogle | Valerie Woods | October 17, 1999 |
| 31 32 | 9 10 | "It's Not About the Butter: Parts 1 & 2" | Artie Mandelberg | Nancy Miller & Bob Lowry | October 24, 1999 |
| 33 | 11 | "Elephants in the Room" | Michael Zinberg | Sibyl Gardner | October 31, 1999 |
| 34 | 12 | "That's Our Son, Bobby" | Artie Mandelberg | Mark Israel | November 28, 1999 |
| 35 | 13 | "Say Something" | Elodie Keene | Kathleen McGhee-Anderson | December 5, 1999 |
| 36 | 14 | "Eyes Wide Open" | Michael Zinberg | Mark Israel | December 12, 1999 |
| 37 | 15 | "A Parent's Job" | Valerie Norman | Dee Johnson & Valerie Woods | December 19, 1999 |
| 38 | 16 | "Homegirl" | Janet Davidson | Kathleen McGhee-Anderson | January 2, 2000 |
| 39 | 17 | "From This Day On" | Artie Mandelberg | Nancy Miller | January 9, 2000 |
| 40 | 18 | "Hey, Ugly!" | Bob McCracken | Sibyl Gardner | January 16, 2000 |
| 41 | 19 | "Pay Your Dues" | Artie Mandelberg | Dayna North | January 23, 2000 |
| 42 | 20 | "You Think I Am Lying to You?" | Joanna Kerns | Dee Johnson & Valerie Woods | January 30, 2000 |
| 43 | 21 | "The Toolshed Behind the Church" | Jan Eliasberg | Bob Lowry | March 5, 2000 |
| 44 | 22 | "Who Abandoned Who?" | Artie Mandelberg | Mark Israel | March 12, 2000 |
Season 3 (2000–01)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | 1 | "Nope" | Kevin Hooks | Dee Johnson & Bob Lowry | July 23, 2000 |
| 46 | 2 | "It's a Good Thing I'm Not Black" | Artie Mandelberg | Valerie Woods | July 30, 2000 |
| 47 | 3 | "Three Hours a Week" | Janet Davidson | Sibyl Gardner | August 6, 2000 |
| 48 | 4 | "The Dust of Life" | Artie Mandelberg | Mark Israel | August 13, 2000 |
| 49 | 5 | "Three Lucky Ladies on the Line" | Joanna Kerns | Bob Lowry & Dayna North | August 20, 2000 |
| 50 | 6 | "Nothing Personal" | Michael Zinberg | Sibyl Gardner | September 3, 2000 |
| 51 | 7 | "Life" | Elodie Keene | Kathleen McGhee-Anderson | September 10, 2000 |
| 52 | 8 | "Love Is Love" | Janet Davidson | Mark Israel | October 8, 2000 |
| 53 | 9 | "There Are No Rules" | Elodie Keene | Valerie Woods | October 15, 2000 |
| 54 | 10 | "The Outsiders" | Michael Zinberg | Dayna Lynne North | October 29, 2000 |
| 55 | 11 | "It's a Mother-Daughter Thing" | Artie Mandelberg | Nancy Miller | November 5, 2000 |
| 56 | 12 | "Lighten Up, Rene" | Janet Davidson | Lois Johnson | December 3, 2000 |
| 57 | 13 | "Where's the Justice in That?" | Joanna Kerns | Denitria Harris-Lawrence | December 10, 2000 |
| 58 | 14 | "Five Golden Rings" | Artie Mandelberg | Valerie Woods & Dayna Lynne North | December 17, 2000 |
| 59 | 15 | "Life Isn't Fair" | Briana London | Bob Lowry & Dayna North | January 14, 2001 |
| 60 | 16 | "Ten Days? Are You Crazy?" | Mark Taylor | Mark Israel & Dayna North | January 21, 2001 |
| 61 | 17 | "Tick, Tick, Tick" | Valerie Norman | Nicole Mirante & Nancy Miller | February 18, 2001 |
| 62 | 18 | "Don't Tell Me It's Not About Frankie" | Janet Davidson | Alexandra Bleckner & Nancy Miller | February 25, 2001 |
| 63 | 19 | "What If?" | Michael Zinberg | Mark Israel & Dayna North | March 4, 2001 |
| 64 | 20 | "Children Are the Most Important Thing" | Gary A. Randall | Lois Johnson & Dayna North | March 11, 2001 |
| 65 66 | 21 22 | "It's Not Just a Word" | Artie Mandelberg | Nancy Miller, Denitra Harris-Lawrence & Dayna North | March 18, 2001 |
Season 4 (2001–02)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 67 | 1 | "Don't Forget to Take Out Your Teeth" | Michael Zinberg | Bob Lowry & Dayna North | July 15, 2001 |
| 68 | 2 | "No More Forever" | Briana London | Valerie Woods | July 22, 2001 |
| 69 | 3 | "Everyone Deserves to Be Loved" | Artie Mandelberg | Mark Israel & Dayna North | July 29, 2001 |
Awards and nominations
Young Artist Awards
All performances were categorized into the "Best Performance in a TV Drama Series" category.
- 1998–1999[1] — All nominees won their own awards
- Dan Byrd — Supporting Young Actor
- Shari Dyon Perry — Supporting Young Actress
- Mae Middleton — Young Actress Age Ten and Under
- Tony C. Barriere — Guest Starring Young Actor
- 1999–2000[2] — Neither won an award
- Supporting Young Actor
- Dan Byrd
- Tony C. Barriere
- Supporting Young Actress
- Shari Dyon Perry
- Mae Middleton
- Olivia Friedman
2000–2001 — (Nominated) Best Family TV Drama Series[3]
Screen Actors Guild Awards
| Year | Association | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998/99 | Screen Actors Guild | Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series | Any Day Now | Nominated |
NAACP Image Awards
| Year | Association | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | NAACP Image Award | Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Any Day Now | Nominated |
| 2000 | NAACP Image Award | Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Any Day Now | Nominated |
| 2001 | NAACP Image Award | Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Any Day Now | Nominated |
| 2002 | NAACP Image Award | Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Any Day Now | Nominated |
| 2003 | NAACP Image Award | Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Any Day Now | Nominated |
Primetime Emmy Awards
2000 Primetime Emmy Awards — (Nominated) Outstanding Costumes for a Series: Mary Anne Aston (Costume Supervisor); Elizabeth P. Palmer (Costume Designer)[4]
See also
- Birmingham Campaign
- Civil rights movement in popular culture
References
- "Past Nominees and Winners." Young Artist Awards, 2012. Web. 20 Feb. 2012 <http://www.youngartistawards.org/years.htm>.
- Notes
- "Twenty-first Annual Young Artist Awards: 1998–1999." Young Artist Awards, 2000. <http://www.youngartistawards.org/noms21.htm>.
- "Twenty-Second Annual Young Artist Awards: 1999–2000." Young Artist Awards, 2001. <http://www.youngartistawards.org/noms22A.htm>.
- "Twenty-Third Annual Young Artist Awards: 2000–2001." Young Artist Awards, 2000. <http://www.youngartistawards.org/noms23A.htm>
- "Any Day Now." Emmys, 2000. Web. 20 Feb. 2012 <http://www.emmys.com/shows/any-day-now>.
External links
- Any Day Now on IMDb
- Any Day Now at TV.com
- Any Day Now at epguides.com